Mesut Ozil’s prospective move to Barcelona blocked by Lionel Messi

Spanish outlet Don Balon have reported that Mesut Ozil’s potential transfer from Arsenal to Barcelona on deadline day was blocked by Lionel Messi.

Ozil had been linked with a move to Barcelona towards the end of the transfer window this summer after the Spaniards failed in their pursuit to land main target Philippe Coutinho from Liverpool.

The Catalan giants had been looking to sign a midfield playmaker as a replacement for an ageing Andres Iniesta and had identified Coutinho as their major target.

Barcelona chased the ex-Inter man throughout the summer but failed to convince Liverpool to sell the player and consequently, they had to scamper for new targets towards the end of August.

One of the alternative targets for Barcelona was believed to be Arsenal’s Mesut Ozil and it had been reported that they were ready to make a bid of around £55 million on deadline day for the German playmaker but in the end, the offer never came into fruition.

Recent reports from Don Balon have suggested that Barcelona were in fact interested in signing Ozil but their plans to make a bid for the 29-year-old was blocked by their best player, Lionel Messi, because he believed that the deal would represent bad business for the club.

Ozil had previously played for Barcelona’s arch rivals Real Madrid between 2010 and 2013 and had managed to impress many, forming a deadly partnership with Cristiano Ronaldo.

He would probably have been a decent signing for Barcelona as well but considering his contractual situation at Arsenal, Ernesto Valverde’s men might well be glad to have saved themselves around £55million now and attempt to sign him on a free next summer.

Barcelona were shocked earlier this summer when PSG broke the world record transfer fee to lure Neymar to Paris and this had led many to question the La Liga giants and their status in the football Pyramids.

As a result, the Barcelona hierarchy was under pressure to make a marquee signings for the summer to strengthen their squad. They were successful in signing Ousmane Dembele from Borussia Dortmund for almost £100 million but fans were left frustrated at the club’s inability to attract other big names to Camp Nou this summer.